SAVANNAH, Ga. – The Savannah State University softball team (5-12) split the doubleheader against University of Maryland Eastern Shore (1-17) Wednesday on a very windy day at Lady Tiger Softball Field.
 
The Lady Tigers fell to Maryland Eastern Shore 7-5 in the first game and defeated the Hawks 8-0 in five innings in game two.
 
Senior shortstop Drea Lesure went .667 (2-for-3) with an RBI and two runs scored, while sophomore first baseman Hannah Deckle and senior Brianna Harris both went .500 (3-for-6).  Freshman Tanisha Williams (1-0) picked up the win in game two after pitching a complete game scattering four hits with seven strikeouts.
 
Maryland Eastern Shore 7, Savannah State 5
Harris, freshman right fielder Shayna Byers, Deckle and junior pitcher Faith Dickerson each recorded a hit, while Byers hit a three-run home run.  On the mound, Dickerson (0-6) picked up the loss pitching the first six innings giving up seven runs on seven hits.
 
Maryland Eastern Shore scored the first four runs in the top of the first inning to take a 4-0 lead after a two-run double, and RBI single and an RBI walk and added another run in the third inning to take a 5-0 lead after an RBI triple.
 
Savannah State got on the board with three runs in the bottom half of the inning to cut the lead to 5-3.  Sophomore second baseman Allye Sneed started the inning with a walk and Harris followed up with another walk to put runners on first and second with no outs.  A strikeout gave the first out of the inning and Sneed and Harris advanced on a wild pitch.   Byers came through with a three-run home run to left field to cut the lead to 5-3.  Back-to-back outs ended the inning for the Lady Tigers.
 
The Hawks scored two runs in the top of the sixth inning to increase the lead to 7-3 after an error to allow a run score and an RBI fielder's choice.
 
The Lady Tigers responded with the final two runs of the game in the bottom of the inning to cut the final deficit to two runs.  Junior third baseman Cortni Jones started the inning with a walk, while Deckle singled to put runners on first and second with no outs.  A pop out recorded the first out of the inning and Lesure walked to load the bases with one out.  Dickerson hit an infield single to drive home Jones to cut the lead to 7-4 and a fielder's choice allowed freshman pinch runner Kameryn Baker to score to cut the lead to 7-5.  A strikeout ended the SSU threat in the inning.
 
The Hawks were led by Mackenzie Brown going 3-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI, while Sara Jo Whaley went 2-for-4.  On the mound, Nasya Goodman (1-6) picked up the win pitching a complete game giving up five runs on four hits with seven walks.
 
Savannah State 8, Maryland Eastern Shore 0 (5)
Sneed, Lesure, Harris, Deckle and Jones all recorded two hits each, while Deckle recorded three RBIs and Jones recorded two RBIs.  On the mound, Williams (1-0) pitched a complete shutout game scattering four hits with seven strikeouts in her first start this season.
 
Savannah State scored a run in the bottom of the first inning after Deckle hit a single to left field to drive home Lesure for a 1-0 lead and added five runs in the bottom of the second inning to increase the lead to 6-0.
 
Byers started the inning with a walk and after a flyout of the first out of the inning, Baker singled through the left side and Sneed hit a bunt single back to the pitcher to load the bases with one out.  Lesure hit an infield single to the shortstop to drive home Byers for a 2-0 lead and Harris singled through the left side to drive home Baker and Sneed for a 4-0 lead.
 
Deckle single through the left side to drive home Harris and Lesure for a 6-0 lead and Jones was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second with one out, but back-to-back outs ended the SSU threat.
 
The Lady Tigers scored the final two runs of the game in the fourth inning for the eight run win after Jones hit a two-run home run to left center field.
 
The Shore was led by Brown going 2-for-3, while Samantha Casarez and Breana Florez each recorded a hit.  On the mound, LeAnn Gingrich pitched a complete game giving up eight runs on 12 hits.
 
The Lady Tigers start MEAC play this weekend traveling to Daytona Beach, Fla., for a three-game series against Bethune-Cookman University.  The series starts with a doubleheader Saturday starting at 1 p.m. and a single game Sunday at noon.
 
MD. Eastern Shore 7, Savannah State 5 (Mar 21, 2018 at Savannah, Ga.) (Game 1)
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MD. Eastern Shore... 401 002 0 -  7  9  0      (1-16)
Savannah State...... 003 002 0 -  5  4  2      (4-12)
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Pitchers: MD. Eastern Shore - GOODMAN,Nasya and WHALEY,Sara Jo. Savannah State -
DICKERSON, Faith; DECKLE, Hannah(7) and CYRUS, Kelsey.
Win-GOODMAN,Nasya(1-6)  Loss-DICKERSON, Faith(0-6)  T-2:19  A-38
HR SSUSB - BYERS, Shayna (1).
Weather: 59, sunny, wind: WNW@24 mph
 
Savannah State 8, MD. Eastern Shore 0 (Mar 21, 2018 at Savannah, Ga.) (Game 2)
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MD. Eastern Shore... 000 00 -  0  4  1      (1-17)
Savannah State...... 150 2X -  8 12  1      (5-12)
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Pitchers: MD. Eastern Shore - GINGRICH,LeAnn and WHALEY,Sara Jo. Savannah State -
WILLIAMS, Tanisha and CYRUS, Kelsey.
Win-WILLIAMS, Tanisha(1-0)  Loss-GINGRICH,LeAnn(0-9)  T-1:21  A-42
HR SSUSB - JONES, Cortni (3).
Weather: 62, party cloud, wind: W@27mph
 
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